The Plastic Changemakers Education Pack and a special Miraculous episode have been created to teach children about plastic pollution.
In honour of Plastic Free July 2023, international non-profit organisation The Breteau Foundation is encouraging UK primary school teachers to pre-register for a Plastic Changemakers Education Pack ahead of the summer holidays. Created in partnership with Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir, the resources will be available to download on return to school in September.
The initiative, in collaboration with award-winning global independent animation studios Zag and Mediawan Kids & Family, aims to inspire and empower one million primary school children around the world to take action against plastic pollution by providing access to quality education on the subject.
The Plastic Changemakers Education Pack provides teachers with a free-of-charge, comprehensive and flexible set of lesson plans and activities. It contains five modules and seeks to equip children aged 7-11 with a comprehensive knowledge about plastics, empowering them to become ambassadors for change in their homes and local communities and kickstart a global movement on responsible plastic use.
The Plastic Changemakers Education Pack is responding to demand from students to learn about the topic of plastic pollution, whilst also taking pressure off teachers who are having to dedicate additional time and money to provide environmental education to their students.
Primary school teachers that took part in research commissioned by The Breteau Foundation in the UK identified plastic pollution as being the most important subject to address when teaching children about the environment, followed by the climate crisis and sustainability. The demand for environmental education also stems from students, with 88% of teachers reporting that concerned pupils have specifically asked how they can make an impact in reducing plastic pollution.
The Breteau Foundation, Zag and Mediawan Kids & Family have also co-produced an episode of Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir simply called “Action,” where the characters of the show seek to demonstrate how small efforts can make a big impact in the fight against plastic.
Sebastian Breteau, founder of The Breteau Foundation commented: “Our international experience in education has shown that children want to see more responsible plastic use in their homes and communities. We want to inspire over one million primary school children to become plastic changemakers, and by equipping them with the right knowledge, we believe we can kick start a global movement on responsible plastic use.”
Emma Becker, executive director at The Breteau Foundation added: “As a former teacher, I know first-hand the pressures teachers face when it comes to finding and preparing resources for lessons. The Plastic Changemakers Education Pack has been created by experts to allow teachers to focus their time wholly on delivering the lessons.”
The Plastic Changemakers Education Pack and “Action” episode will be available on The Breteau Foundation website in September when all educators will be able to download the pack for free and stream the episode.
